The Naropa Ceremony, Shey, Ladakh - July 2004
The eagerly awaited ceremony for the donning of the sacred Six Ornaments of Naropa took place within a magnificent setting on the first weekend of July 2004. The Druk Pema Karpo School site with its circle of Himalayan peaks crowning the lush Shey valley played host to about 700 international students and 100,000 Ladakhis during this wonderful festival. In order to prepare us for this great blessing His Holiness Gyalwang Drukpa presided over a 6 day Drubchen, where from dawn to late evening we recited Vajrasattva mantra in the overflowing temple in the new Naropa Pavilion, a multicoloured building set against the mountain tops, built especially for this event. Teachings on impermanence were received after a trip to Hemis monastery to see both the unfurling of the 600 year old Guru Rinpoche tankha that is brought out only once every 12 years for just a few precious hours and to watch the Lama dances in the baking sun. As part of the Ornaments ceremony His Holiness gave the rare Avalokiteshvara initiation. His Holiness explained that the five major emotions and the dream state are represented by the Six Ornaments; that Avalokiteshvara is the manifestation of love and compassion, and that all our emotions needed to be embodied in love and compassion. He taught us also about the need for a strong motivation on the spiritual path. It was an extraordinary day. The blazing light, the mountains framing the beautiful pavilion, the 100,000 Ladakhis dressed in their finery, the streamers of prayer flags against the blue sky and His Holiness wearing these most holy of ornaments was indeed a most moving teaching in compassion, love and purification.